Progesterone suppositories and PMS

[Catherine]

Hi All,
Just wondering if anyone seems to get similar feelings to PND during prementrual times. Ive noticed that for 3 weeks out of each month I feel reasonably well and getting on with life but then start feeling quite lousy again premenstrally. Ive been trying for ages to find a way to get hold of natural progesterone, 3 doctors have said they don't or won't prescribe it and I've tried the creams and tablets from health food shops, they don't seem to do much and I've since discovered that suppositories are the only way progesterone can be properly absorbed. Has anyone managed to get hold of these and if so how??

[Elaine]

Hi Catherine

I know exactly what you mean about feeling low before the start of a period. I suffer exactly the same and agree you do almost feel as if the depression is coming back. I have discovered a product called PMS Escape which you can buy on the internet and it is quite brilliant. It is a powder that you mix with water and take when you start to feel the dreaded PMS starting. It is a mix of carbohydrates (nothing sinister) and is supposed to increase your levels of seratonin which apparently drop prior to your period. Because it is in a drink form it gets into your system quicker. They claim it is like eating a jacket potato (same carbohydrates) but it works much quicker to raise your seratonin levels. I take it when I know its that time and I must admit it does make you feel much calmer and able to cope. It was covered on GMTV and LK Today. It is pink in colour and tastes quite pleasant. I think the website is called pmsescape.co.uk. Will double check after I have sent this and if wrong will post again with right website. It is a great site and explains all about it and has frequently asked questions and such like which are really helpful. I'm always a bit sceptical about these sort of products but I have to admit it works well for me.

Hope this helps Catherine

Love

Elaine

[Elaine]

Hi Again

Got it slightly wrong it is pmsescape.com

Elaine

[Catherine]

Thanks Elaine I'll look into it, but like you I'm quite suspicious about these products!!

[mel]

Hi,
I suffered from PND after the birth of my first child. Whilst pregnant with my second I was worried about suffering again. A friend who had suffered depression before her first pregnancy had been given progesterone pessaries as a precaution against 'baby blues' and PND. When I asked my doctor about them they told me they had never heard of them. My friend passed on her spare ones to me and I took them after the birth of my son. They are called Cyclogest 200 and should be available from your doctor (insist they look it up if they claim never to have heard of it). They certainly helped with the inital baby blues and so far I am feeling fine! Good luck! Best wishes, mel TEXT

[Veritee]

I took Progesterone suppositories for PND as it was the only thing I could take as I was breastfeeding and my doctor would not give me any other medication.

Later I took it for PMS as after having PND I found I got terrible PNS when my PND symptoms would return

These suppositories were a treatment proposed mainly at the time ( late 80s early 90s) by a Harley street doctor Katharina Dalton who wrote a book about it called, Depression after Childbirth: How to Recognise and Treat Post-Natal Depression

Oxford University Press
She has updated this book since see: www.oup.co.uk/isbn/0-19-263277-9

and progesterone treatment of PND seems have gone out of favour recently in the medical profession.

I feel it did help me but only mildly but it was better than nothing and I again use natural progesterone in cream form for menopause symptoms and it defiantly helps for this.
Dr Dalton seemed to see it as a sort of cure all for female hormone problems as she also recommended it for PMS and it seems to have helped me for PND, PMS and menopause
She wrote this book also:
Once a Month
Katharina Dalton
Borgo Press
And www.tidesoflife.com/pms.htm
I also belonged to NAPS:
www.pms.org.uk/
Another natural remedy recommended at the time was eating regular small amounts of complex carbohydrates. This seemed to help but I put on weight of course.

Anyway god luck with the progesterone and other treatments

Veritee